Online Directories

The 2022 FCA directories* are available to members only in a private (protected) area of the website.

Click the button below to go to your country’s member site. Once there, you can login using your member registration ID (username). Don’t remember your username? You can find your ID registration number on your latest FCA membership card.

 

*Directories include:
US Ministers
Canadian Ministers
US Churches
Canadian Churches and Ministries
US Parachurch Ministries
Global Partners and Affiliates

Paul Zettersten: Finishing Well

This month the Fellowship of Christian Assemblies said goodbye to one of the truly great FCA leaders of our times.

Paul Zettersten

Paul Zettersten was born in Sweden in 1922 and passed away December 6 at the age of 99. While still in Sweden, young Paul followed in his father’s footsteps to enter the ministry. He married his wife, May, on November 15, 1947 while still in the old country, but they immigrated to the United States the following year.

Together, Paul and May served Immanual Christian Assembly in Los Angeles from 1948 until 1976. Paul resigned as pastor to move to Seattle, Washington, where he ministered for years at Philadelphia Church. He retired from that role in 1996 but continued to serve in multiple ways.

Throughout many of those years, Paul served the Fellowship as editor of a monthly magazine, Conviction (later Fellowship Today). He was named the first president of Fellowship Press, when it was incorporated to publish the Fellowship magazine.

Paul’s faithful and consistent editorial efforts fostered connections and relationships among Fellowship pastors long  before social media was around. With his wife, May, managing the subscriptions and addresses, Paul’s reliable output kept ministers informed about news and updates from around the FCA, both in the U.S. and Canada.  The magazine’s timely and thoughtful articles spoke to pastors and church members alike for many years.

More recently, Paul also contributed his thoughts to the FCA website. Read “Revival Is Within Reach” to get a taste of his ongoing passion and commitment to the cause of Christ.

After retiring from his pastoral duties, Paul continued to remain active in teaching at the Seattle Bible College. His influence there, drawing from his strong academic and theological roots as well as his extensive experience in pastoral ministry, continues to impact numerous ministers and ministries throughout the Fellowship.

Paul’s granddaughter, Erika Franke, writes that her grandfather “was an incredible man of God and was in the ministry as a youth pastor, lead pastor, and teacher for a total of 77 years.” She also notes that he served as president of a missionary outreach organization and even into his latter years helped to promote Southwest Bible College in Moreno Valley, California. His leadership remained strong to the end and at the age of 99, Paul was one of the first Fellowship ministers to renew his registration as a member of the FCA for 2022.

A private graveside service was held for Paul Zettersten December 16 with a public memorial scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, January 8 at Philadelphia Church, Seattle.

 

Growing Needs Lead to Changes

Our Lead Elder, John Sprecher, is excited to announce some major changes in the support structure of the Fellowship and the way in which ministers and churches will be served. The changes are the result of extended discussions over several years on how FCA member churches and ministers can be more effective in shared ministries and can collaborate better—both nationally and internationally.

When the Fellowship was incorporated in 1999 an individual Fellowship Coordinator (now called Lead Elder) was tasked with connecting the regions as well as the nations. Over time it became apparent that all the tasks connected with that assignment was beyond what a single individual could accomplish. As a result, the business meeting in April, 2021, elected to divide the work into three categories, resulting in two new positions being created. All three part-time positions will operate with more tightly focused job descriptions.

Sprecher is pleased that former FCA board president, Sam Snyder, has accepted the ¼-time position as Global Connections Coordinator.

Sam Snyder

Sam Snyder, Missions Coordinator

Sam brings a wealth of experience to the new role, having been raised in Mexico by missionary parents and serving as a church planter in the US. As Global Connections Coordinator, he will focus on:

  • Coordinating global efforts of our regional board representatives;
  • Connecting with missionaries in the field or on furlough;
  • Consulting with and advising church mission boards;
  • Assisting new missionaries preparing to go to the field; and
  • Relating to our international Partners and Affiliates from other lands.

Meanwhile, Sprecher is happy to introduce Dave Bechtold as FCA Ministry Coordinator with a focus on ministry needs and resources for U.S. churches and pastors.

Dave Bechtold

Dave Bechtold, Ministry Coordinator

Former Family Life Pastor at City Church in Madison, Wisconsin, Dave has been a core part of the Wisconsin Connections. As a facilitator and leader of multiple ministries, he brings significant gifts and heart to this ¼-time position. His assignments include:

  • Relating to regional representatives assigned to address ministry needs;
  • Encouraging best practices in regional and national meetings;
  • Being available to consult with pastors and churches;
  • Helping pastors and churches in any way possible; and
  • Enhancing Fellowship connections, communicating about God’s work.

New Youth and Family Ministries Director Hired

On Palm Sunday, Bethel Christian Fellowship (St. Paul, MN) announced the appointment of a new Director of Youth and Family Ministries, Justin Finton.

Justin Finton comes from his role as youth pastor of Abundant Life Church in Blaine, MN, where he grew the youth program even during the worst months of the pandemic as well as through a pastoral transition. Raised as the son of a pastor, Justin is credentialed for ministry through the Assemblies of God.

“We were really attracted to Justin for several reasons,” reports Steve Rasmussen, pastor of Bethel Christian Fellowship, recounting his love for God, the Word, the church, and youth. He also noted Justin’s experience and success in youth ministry along with his desire to grow in intercultural relationships and understanding, which are high values at Bethel Christian Fellowship.

Justin began his duties in April, bringing his wife, Michelle and their new baby, Ezra.

Pentecostals You Should Know

If you grew up in a Pentecostal church, as I did, you may think you’ve heard all there is to know about Pentecostals, charismatics, and their history.

I know I did.

I thought I could list the important names, the movers-and-shakers connected to the twentieth-century outpouring of the Holy Spirit. I could recall the anecdotes. I knew the exploits from the lives of Charles Parham, William Seymour, Smith Wigglesworth, and Aimee Semple McPherson. I had read about the trail-blazing, innovative ministries that brought a fresh encounter with the power of God to spiritually hungry people.

This was my tribe, and I thought I knew them pretty well.

That, however, was before I picked up Dean Merrill’s new book, 50 Pentecostal and Charismatic Leaders Every Christian Should Know (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Chosen, a division of Baker Publishing Group [2021]).

Merrill, well-known author and FCA friend, has done it again! In his inimitable style and engaging manner, Merrill introduces us to 50 key influencers of the modern Pentecostal movement, beginning with stories from the mid-nineteenth century! Here are names you’ve heard before (David du Plessis, Gordon and Freda Lindsay, Kathryn Kuhlman, Reinhard Bonnke, Jack Hayford) but also names you may have missed in history class (Maria Woodworth-Etter, Francisco Olazábal, Leo Josef Suenens, Bernard E. Underwood, Ithiel Clemmons, Wonsuk and Julie Ma).

Turns out there was a lot I didn’t know! In uncovering details of our spiritual roots, 50 Pentecostal and Charismatic Leaders delights even as it informs. You’ll discover new personalities in the Pentecostal family tree, of course, but you’ll also discover new details and insights about familiar Spirit-filled leaders you thought you knew.

The stories are inspiring, but they are not sugar-coated. You’ll read about both the miraculous and the missteps, both doctrinal insights and theological idiosyncrasies. In his introduction, Merrill notes that “none of the fifty was perfect” and that many displayed “human flaws and misassumptions.” He does not gloss over their faults, but he reports them charitably, displaying a respect for leaders who, while daring to seize the kingdom, occasionally went too far.

What impressed me most about Merrill’s book, though, was how it inspired me. I found myself wishing I had been there when these pioneers sought God and prayed. Reading the book sparked a desire to have seen the early days of the Pentecostal renewal, as well as a desire to pray yet again for a new day.

Merrill’s book is sure to inspire and stir its readers to seek for more from God.

—Richard Doebler